City chooses go-slow mode on noise issue

With the "hornet's nest stirred up" by recent decisions and meetings, Sarasota commissioners opt for a lengthier look at easing downtown noise restrictions

By JESSIE VAN BERKELjessie.vanberkel@heraldtribune.com

Initial meetings on relaxing the city's noise ordinance riled up residents and prompted the commission Monday to slow the discussion and focus on enforcement.

Officials reversed a plan to have an ad-hoc committee come up with recommendations. Instead, they asked the city attorney to review the history, seek expert advice and better organize the discussion on changes.

Commissioner Paul Caragiulo reignited the perennial noise debate last fall. He held two public meetings on whether Sarasota should relax its rules governing when, and how loud, downtown businesses can play outdoor amplified music.

He told commissioners the conversation needs to become "less emotional and more empirical," and did not think a committee would generate new ideas.

He suggested the city hire a noise ordinance expert, who is not a part of the drama, to draft recommendations.

"Since we've done the ugly work, if you will, of getting the hornets' nest stirred up, let's have someone look at it objectively," Caragiulo said.

Commissioner Terry Turner was the sole vote against the plan to have City Attorney Robert Fournier review, get comments and come back with narrowed plans in about six weeks.

"If the task force is premature, then that work is premature. I think we should just focus on enforcement at this time," Turner said.

During the noise meetings, many people expressed concerns that the city does not enforce its noise rules.

Caragiulo said last week one person in the police department was certified in taking noise measurements. City Manager Tom Barwin said more people have since been trained.

"We have to make sure what is on the books is being enforced," Caragiulo said. "Because there's going to be no trust unless people feel like they're being treated fairly."

City commissioners were more decisive when they decided Sarasotans who blare their car radio at night will need to turn down the sound to avoid a costly citation after April 1.

The commission unanimously passed an ordinance restricting "plainly audible" sound — meaning noise someone can hear clearly from 50 feet away — coming from a vehicle between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays, and 10 p.m. and 10 a.m. on weekends. Police will begin enforcing the rule next month.

The rules come after police and city officials received numerous complaints from residents in Newtown, who said they could not sleep because a group of people would park on Dr. Martin Luther King Way and crank up the music at night. "It is more than just a nuisance," Commissioner Willie Shaw said, adding that the music blasted early in the morning impacts "the overall well-being of the neighborhoods."

Now, people will have one minute to comply with the requirements. If they don't turn down the noise, police can issue a civil infraction and a $250 fine, with a second infraction costing $500. However, if the driver doesn't contest those citation fees, they drop to $100.

Police can arrest people for a third violation.

The city has not enforced its restrictions on noise since 2010, after the American Civil Liberties Union challenged the legality of Sarasota's laws.

In December, the Florida Supreme Court ruled the state's law regulating volume from vehicles was unconstitutional; one of the major issues was that the rule did not apply to all types of sound and exempted certain political and business speech.

Sarasota's new ordinance repeals the parts of the city code that referenced the state law.